Embodiments herein generally relate to systems, methods, services, etc. for obtaining user feedback and provides a simple user interface that causes a form to be printed and an apparatus and method to simply scan and transmit the form (after the user has provided comments) to the appropriate customer service entity.
Embodiments herein utilize a device that includes the ability to print, scan, and communicate with a remote customer service entity. There are many devices currently available that have these abilities, such as copiers, fax machines, multifunction printers, etc., and the embodiments herein are intended to operate with such machines. For example, Xerox Corporation, Stamford Conn., USA, manufactures many copying and printing devices that have the ability to print, scan, fax, and communicate over wired and wireless syndication networks and the detailed workings such devices are not elaborated upon in detail herein, so as to focus the reader on the salient aspects of the present embodiments.
Such printing and copying devices are used by a wide variety of users who have vastly differing needs and expectations of the printing device. These different users can provide very valuable feedback to designers, servicing personnel, managers, quality control supervisors, etc. Indeed, it is common for anecdotal concerns, problems, or issues to be fed back to product development and/or research teams.
However, most feedback systems are cumbersome, require the user to engage in telephonic or electronic chat conversations, or require the user to provide the feedback by mail (land-based mail or e-mail). All these feedback systems require the user to take cumbersome steps using devices and systems that are separate from the printing device upon which feedback is desired. Further, many of these feedback systems require the user to be adept at responding to surveys through purely electronic interfaces (such as filling in the blanks of electronic forms and e-mailing such forms). However, many users of printing devices are not adept at working with purely electronic interfaces. Therefore, such feedback systems are not utilized extensively by users and much valuable feedback information that could potentially improve the quality and/or usefulness of the printing device never reaches product development and/or research teams.
The embodiments of the invention described herein provide a feedback system that is performed exclusively by the printing device about which the feedback is based, and which utilizes a handwritten feedback entry. The feedback system described herein is easily accessible from the normal operating interface of the printing device. In addition, the embodiments herein place the handwritten feedback into an electronic form so that it can be quickly and easily transmitted from the printing device to many departments within the corporation that manufacture the printing device. The embodiments herein do not require extensive use or knowledge of the specific printing device in question, which enables the feedback to be obtained from novice and expert users alike.
Further, because the embodiments disclosed herein utilize handwritten feedback, the users do not need to be adept at working with electronic forms. Some users prefer to provide information in handwritten forms versus electronic forms (especially if the user interface is small and awkward to use-as is sometimes the case with electronic interfaces that are included within printing devices). Also, many times users have idle time while they are waiting for the printing device to finish its printing and/or copying operation and are likely to complete a handwritten feedback form during such idle time (e.g., while they are standing next to the copier waiting for an on-demand copy job to be completed). All these factors of embodiments herein combine to increase the amount of feedback provided from the wide variety of users that operate today's printing devices.
When configured to operate with embodiments herein, such a device includes a feedback button, graphic user interface, or other selector that can be activated by a user when the user decides to provide feedback relating to the device itself. Thus, for example, the printing device configured according to embodiments herein comprises a button, a key, a touch screen, and/or a pointing device which activates the customer feedback option. The feedback option can also be within other menus on the printing device.
The method prints a feedback form in response to activation of the customer feedback option. The printing device and/or the feedback form instruct the user to supply feedback comments on the feedback form that the device printed. Thus, the feedback comments comprise handwritten, hand printed, and/or typed marks on the feedback form. The users are also instructed to scan the feedback form using the device that printed the feedback form after the user supplies feedback comments onto the feedback form. Thus, the embodiments herein cause the feedback form to be scanned using the printing device.
The device can identify the feedback form and distinguish the feedback form from other documents that may be scanned by the printing device in a number of different ways. For example, the user can activate a button, a key, a touch screen, and/or a pointing device on the printing device which directs the printing device to scan the feedback form. Alternatively, the embodiments herein can automatically identify the feedback form in response to scanning of the feedback form. If the feedback form is to be automatically identified, the printing of the feedback form causes the feedback form to include unique markings (such as barcodes or glyphs) that allow the central processing unit to automatically identify the feedback form and distinguish the feedback form from other documents that may be scanned by the printing device.
Thus, the embodiments herein capture the feedback form as a “feedback form image.” This image can be stored temporarily or permanently and can also be transmitted from the printing device to a feedback collection entity, which can comprise one or more customer service locations, design centers, quality control centers, etc.
An apparatus embodiment herein includes one or more of the following: a central processing unit; a printing engine operatively connected to the central processing unit; a scanner operatively connected to the central processing unit; a user interface operatively connected to the central processing unit; and an input/output operatively connected to the central processing unit. Again, the graphic user interface comprises a customer feedback option.
The central processing unit is adapted to cause the printing engine to print the feedback form in response to the user activating the customer feedback option. The user interface and/or the feedback form instruct the user to supply feedback comments on the feedback form and to scan the feedback form using the scanner. The central processing unit is adapted to identify (automatically, or according to user input, as discussed above) the feedback form in response to the feedback form being scanned by the scanner and to capture the feedback form as a feedback form image. The central processing unit is also adapted to transmit the feedback form image to a feedback collection entity through the input/output.
As mentioned above, the feedback form can comprise unique markings to allow the central processing unit to automatically identify the feedback form. The user interface can comprise simple buttons, keys, etc. or can comprise a more complex graphic user interface that has menus, one of which can be for selecting the customer feedback option. Thus, the graphic user interface can include a button, a key, a touch screen, and/or a pointing device which activate the customer feedback option. Similarly, the graphic user interface can include a button, a key, a touch screen, and/or a pointing device which directs the scanner to scan the feedback form after the user has supplied the feedback comments on the feedback form.
These and other features are described in, or are apparent from, the following detailed description.